The Wire and Cable India team (WCI) recently had an interesting conversation with Mr. Nikhil Gupta, Executive Director, RPG Cables – a division of KEC International Limited – about how his company’s new facility had performed over the last one year and his future plans.
RPG Cables is capable of manufacturing over 36,000 kilometres of power cables, 0.6 million core kilometres of jelly filled telecom cables and 0.365 mn fibre kilometres of optical fibre cables (as of June 2013). Besides, the company has an extensive sales network across the country with quality sales offices and authorised dealers to serve its customers’ needs.
Given below are edited excerpts from this engrossing interaction
WCI: How has the previous year been for RPG Cables?
Nikhil Gupta: The previous year was rather tough for the industry, especially for HT cables – mainly because of slowdown in offtake by utilities and an excess capacity in the industry. Last year, we established our facility at Vadodara – especially for our EHV range of cables up to 220 kv – where a 2,000 sq mm copper cable with corrugated aluminium moisture barrier was manufactured for the first time in India.
WCI: How are you responding to the global economic crisis and the stagnant demand and oversupply situation?
NG: The company is currently focusing on new products, markets and geographies to be able to meet the challenges posed by the global economic slowdown.
WCI: What new product develop-ments have taken place at RPG Cables?
NG: RPG Cables has commissioned a state-of-the-art, extra high voltage cables plant at Vadodara. It can manufacture cables up to 400kv. This plant has some unique features, such as the revolutionary “Self Managed Teams” concept, platinum rating by India Green Buildings Council – the highest by any cable company in India – world-class quality and IT systems and people from some of the most respected companies around the world. We are currently focusing on getting our 220 kv cables type tested from an independent laboratory. It may be mentioned that this plant has been accredited and approved by some of the top laboratories and customers worldwide.
WCI: What challenges and opportunities will the cable industry encounter in the coming two to three years? How can the industry meet these challenges?
NG: The Indian wire and cable industry currently faces the threat of dumping and cheap imports into the country due to excess capacities across the world. It faces the threat of substandard cables entering the market because of price pressures arising out of surplus capacities. It is therefore necessary to standardise the cables being used and specified across utilities. We need to raise the standards to which these cables are manufactured. This alone will ensure longevity of our infrastructure.
WCI: What steps have you taken to establish your global presence? How can industry players from different countries help you in accomplishing this task?
NG: We currently export cables to over fifty countries across the world. Our aim is to increase our “share of wallet” in these countries. We have also identified certain growth leaders and are focusing on them to enhance our presence.
WCI: India seems to be an attractive destination for overseas players in the extra high voltage sector. What challenges and opportunities does this sector present to Indian entrepreneurs?
NG: Overseas manufacturers see India as an attractive destination for EHV cables because of the stringent “pre-qualification” criteria imposed by the utilities. This makes it very difficult for newcomers to compete on the market. The growing market for EHV cables is clearly an opportunity for Indian players. The threat of dumping and cheap imports is clear and visible.
WCI: Do joint ventures, partnerships and acquisitions figure in your future plans?
NG: We are always open to partnerships and alliances that are mutually beneficial.
